Samantha Mackes Visits Section 36!

Section 36 has another visitor! Samantha Mackes is a Red Sox fan, and the current Miss Exeter. She's getting ready to compete for the Miss New Hampshire crown in just a couple short weeks. Thankfully she was nice enough to take time out of her busy schedule and visit with us to discuss her time as Miss Exeter, the Red Sox, and more. 

So, let's see what happens when Samantha Mackes visits Section 36!

You've been involved in the Miss NH organization for a while. What do you like most about being a titleholder?

I really love the volunteerism part of being a titleholder! Getting dressed up is great, but I love having the ability and the opportunity to go out into the community and make a change. Seeing kid’s faces when you walk into the room wearing a crown isn’t half bad either!

What lessons from previous pageants can you use at this year's Miss NH competition?

To make every moment count and to give it your all, to never feel like you wish you could change something.  

You made a memorable volunteering trip to Africa. What do you remember most from that experience?

There is so much from that trip that I will never forget. I worked in an orphanage for a week with a group of students and we spent time with the kids and worked around the orphanage. I think the most memorable however would be building a library and a sustainable garden – two things that have had a lasting impact for them. Spending the time to create a library and a garden from nothing really makes you appreciate what you have.

What can you tell me about your platform, "Fighting for their dreams: Nurturing their future"?

My platform revolves around mentoring! I spend a lot of time

working with many different organizations as a mentor, and even created my own program to help encourage peer mentoring in schools!  I work with Strong Women, Strong Girls; Big Sister’s Association of Boston; Mission Hill After School Program; and the Boys and Girls Clubs of America. The program I created is called WRITES, which stands for Writing Relationships in the Education System. It is a peer based mentoring program that involves students in grades 1-4 being matched with a mentor in grades 5-8, whom they exchange letters with once a week! The program aims to combine a mentoring relationship with a writing relationship to help not only with social skills, but with writing skills as well. My goal is for every child to have a mentor, someone who is always there for them, outside of their family. 

With all the titles you've held in the past, has anything surprised you about your time as Miss Exeter?

How welcoming the community is! This is my 4^th title, but with all of my others, the community hasn’t always been so accepting. In one case, I didn’t have any specific area because I was Miss Granite State! Exeter has really welcomed me in and made me feel welcome. I’m actually part of their Chamber Children’s Fund, which is a great honor! My year as Miss Exeter has been my favorite so far!

This season, the Red Sox have a changing of the guard. David Ortiz is gone, leaving the team with the young kids. Which of the four B's (Betts, Benintendi, Bradley, and Bogaerts) are you most excited about?

I am most interested in seeing what Benintendi can do! The others

have had their shot to show us what they are capable of. 

Speaking of David Ortiz, what’s your favorite Ortiz memory?

Personally, my favorite memory was seeing my first home run! But in the history of the Red Sox, I’d have to say it’s his first walk-off homer against the Yankees that started their comeback! 

What was your first trip to Fenway like?

It was a great experience! I had only ever been to Fisher Cats games, so I was amazed at how big the stadium is in comparison. I also loved all of the food, because let’s be honest, pageant girls eat a lot! I went with my family for my brother’s birthday, so it definitely has a special place in my heart. 

How will the Red Sox do in 2017?

As someone who is going to school in the city, I love the big celebrations after any major win, so I’m hoping for another World Series win! I’m confident that with some hard work, we can do it, even without Ortiz.

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Hard to argue with that analysis! I hope she gets to go to a parade in the fall.

As always, I want to send a huge thank you to Sam for taking the time to visit with us. I hope you enjoyed it. Another big thanks for supplying so many great pictures to go along with the interview. They really make the interview much better than it would be otherwise.

If you'd like to keep up with Sam during her time as Miss Exeter, check out her official Facebook and Instagram accounts. You really should do both.

And, of course, I'd like to wish Sam luck at the Miss New Hampshire competition starting on the 27th. Maybe her next visit will be as Miss New Hampshire! 

Thanks again Sam, and good luck!

Chris Sale is Simply…

Filthy. Nasty. Incredible. Sick.

Well, maybe I shouldn’t say “sick” when talking about the Red Sox right now.

But, that leaves me with one big question.

How did I not see this coming?

Oh, sure. I knew he was a great pitcher. I knew he was one of the best pitchers in the league. I know he was a pitcher worth giving up the top prospect in baseball for. I didn’t know that I was getting a guy who was going to embarrass batters for seven innings.

I mean, I like to consider myself a fairly dedicated baseball fan. I like to think I educate myself on the game and its players. But I didn’t know this.

Because there are different ways a pitcher can win games. There’s the Greg Maddux “keep the hitter off balance and mix it up” type. There’s the Derek Lowe “use the sinker to get a million ground balls” type. There’s the Justin Verlander “bet you can’t hit my fastball” type. There’s the Randy Johnson “you can swing if you want, but the ball is already at your ankle” type. And, there’s the Pedro Martinez “just sit down…you have no idea how to hit any of this” type. 

I didn’t know the Sox were getting Randy Johnson.

How did this guy lose ten games last year?

Now, I know. One game on a freezing cold April night does not a season make. There’s a reason he didn’t throw a shutout every start last year. But, better hitters don’t change that slider. I don’t care how warm it is, you can’t hit that.

So, how did I miss this? East Coast bias? Was he hidden on an underperforming team? Was I just not paying attention?

I’m glad I get to make up for lost time by seeing him every fifth game from now on.

This is going to be a lot of fun.

Chris Sale Is Pitching Tonight

For the Boston Red Sox.

That is all.

Well, no, of course that's not all. But, my goodness, is this the most anticipated Red Sox debut since...since...Pedro? 

Even Pedro had to make his debut on the road. On the West Coast even. His Fenway debut was in his second start. But, he performed amazingly. He gave us all a taste of what was to come as he completely dominated the game. Little did we know at the time that that was just the beginning. 

Another off-season acquisition that made a big Fenway debut was Manny Ramirez. I was at that game too. You all know how it turned out. The Red Sox fell immediately behind 3-0 in the top of the first inning. It was the kind of hole you never expected the Sox to climb out of. The previous season, the game would have already been all but over. But, somehow the first two runners in the bottom of the first reached. Then, Manny put the first pitch he saw into the netting for a game-tying three run home run. That's a way to make an entrance. People were chanting "First pitch homer" in the bathroom after the game. (That's seems a little odd, looking back.)

So, will Chris Sale deliver one of those performances tonight? Will he live up to, or even exceed, our expectations? Will he assure us all that everything is going to be OK. That he is exactly what we're all hoping we got?

I sure hope so. Because, that will be something special.

What do you think we'll see tonight?

Well, That Went Well

I'm not really sure what more you could expect from the start of the season. It was a beautiful day snuck in the middle of a pretty terrible stretch of weather. Your ace, the reigning Cy Young Award

winner, got the win. Your rookie sensation went deep. Your defensive whiz made a fantastic catch. Your championship football team made an appearance. What else is there?

I'm sure that by now you've all either seen the game itself, or enough of the highlights. But, beyond the box score, there were a few things that I took away from the game.

-In the stands before the game, we were all discussing the first pitch ceremony. Obviously the Patriots would be involved. But, who would we "rate" this time? Would we get Brady again, or a lesser tier star like Dion Lewis? Well, we apparently rated pretty high, because the Patriots sent everything but the kitchen sink. Not only the high and the low, but a couple guys in-between. I think it speaks to the level of respect between the organizations that the Patriots sent the best they had. And, not only did they send the best, but they made up a little skit. (At least I assume they had that pre-arranged. Guess I can't be sure with Gronk.) The only thing missing was a giant "6" on Brady's shirt. 

-Following my visit from Amanda Debus not too long ago, I was excited to see Chad Kuhl's pregame introduction. Making your MLB debut is an amazing feeling. But I assume this was his first announcement at a major league field. That gotta be another special moment.

-Chris Sale got a well-deserve ovation. As the biggest off-season acquisition by the Sox in a while, he deserved to be recognized for what we all hope will be a fantastic partnership.

-I was surprised that Rick Porcello stayed in the game as long as he did. I know he was pretty much in control until it got away from him. And, in September I would expect things to play out exactly like they did. But, on Opening Day with a five-run lead I would have expected a quicker hook. I guess you need to start him in the seventh, but maybe just allow him a baserunner. That would have both kept his pitch count a bit lower in the first game of the season, and allowed him to start the year on the right foot. 6.1 innings of one run ball is a better feeling than 6.1 and three runs.

-Craig Kimbrel needs a new entrance song. A song needs to start slow and build the excitement as the closer reaches the mound until the crowd is at a frenzy by the time warm-ups are over. He's practically got a ballad out there. Not what you want at all.

-Speaking of needing something new, the Win Dance Repeat needs some better execution. I think the whole thing has gotten away from them a little bit. What started as a really clever way to have some fun and honor a good performance has become a little forced. Unless the multi-dancing was just for Opening Day. But, they really should revert to the original.

I guess the Sox will just need to win the game tomorrow too to see if they do something new.

What did you notice yesterday?

It's Here!

It's finally here!

All the waiting. All the anticipation. All the boredom. It all ends today, because Red Sox baseball is back!

The bad news? The Sox are already in second place. The good news? They're still ahead of the Yankees.

The even better news? The Red Sox have the reigning Cy Young award winner on the mound for them today. I think the expectations were too low on Rick Porcello entering last season, and they'll probably be a little high for him this season. But, it will be exciting to see what he can produce now that his good year in Detroit wasn't the "fluke."

Pablo Sandoval will also be back. I see no reason not to think he'll have a bounce back year. (I think I got all the negatives to work out there...) It will be fun to see what he can produce with a healthy season. Especially since I think most fans have washed their hands of him, so the pressure will be off. Anything we get will be enough for most.

And, it's the low expectations at some positions that I think will save the Sox this season. Yes, David Ortiz is gone. Yes, David Price is hurt. But, compare the team to last year. Does subtracting Price and adding Sale make the rotation better? Yes. Does subtracting Buchholz help? Sure. Might Porcello slide back a bit? Sure. But I think we can agree, compared to Opening Day last year, this is an upgrade. 

But, will the Sox score runs without Ortiz?

I don't see why not.

Sure, they'll take a hit with (essentially) Mitch Moreland taking Papi's place in the line-up. But, it more than that. A healthy Sandoval takes the place of the hot mess at third base last year. That's an improvement. Anyone think that Andrew Benintendi won't be an improvement over what the Sox got out of left field last season? When the Sox had to force Swihart out there for crying out loud?

So, yes, I think the Sox offense can make up for the loss of Ortiz. No, you can't replace him straight up. But, you can make smaller improvements elsewhere. Which is just what the Sox did. 

So, let's see how it all plays out. Mother Nature has decided to hold of on the snow for a day to allow the Sox to open in the sunshine. Even she is excited to get things started. She wants to make sure everyone gets a good start to the day. And the season.

162-0?